The Ties That Bind
by Lil-Mistress-Quill
Summary: Edward didn't make it to the ballet studio in time and all that he found was a video camera. His beloved was in the hands of a monster and only the daily videos of her torture assured him that she was still alive. Through these videos Edward learns of a number of secrets that Bella had kept from him, secrets that affect his whole family and their very existence. B/E, J/A, J/OC R
1. Chapter 1

When Edward arrived at the ballet studio he found it deserted. No James and more importantly, no Bella. In a fit of rage and anguish the bronze haired Cullen slammed his fist into the mirrored wall sending a ripple through the mirror and causing a rainstorm of thousands of tiny shards of glittering glass to fall to the floor. He was about to leave and hunt for his missing soul mate when something caught his eye. In the middle of the room, sitting on the floor was a small camcorder. When he reached to pick it up, Edward found himself having to suppress a growl as the sweet scent of his beloved was mixed with the bitter aftertaste of her captor. Taking a deep, unnecessary breath, he gently opened the viewing screen and pressed play, the scene before him made his muscles tense almost painfully and his veins burned with rage.

_James smiled smugly into the camera lens._

_"Well hello there Edward so nice of you to join us. I'm sorry I couldn't be there to greet you but I'm a little anxious to start playing with my new toy. I have quite a collection and I think my newest prize will fit right in with the others. I think you know her. Say hello Bella."_

_James moved out of shot and revealed a sight that chilled Edward to the core. His sweet beautiful Bella was bound and gagged propped against the wall he had just smashed, her eyes red and full of fear that grew in intensity as James stalked towards her. Her restrained sobs and whimpers were like daggers shooting straight into Edwards heart and his hands began to shake._

_James appeared back in the shot._

_"Tut tut Bella, it's rude to ignore people. I guess you'll be getting your first lesson right here and now. I hope you enjoy this Edward, I know I will"_

_Bella's eyes widened a second before James's hand impacted her jaw, the force caused her head to rebound off of the wall. For a moment she looked dazed and unaware of her surroundings but after a quick wink into the camera James slammed his hand down into her right leg. Clarity returned to Bella instantly and she screamed and writhed in agony. James stood up and moved the camera away so Bella's form could not be seen but her screams and sobs echoed through the room._

_"Wasn't that fun? I do love playing with my new toys, but I seem to have a habit of breaking them. I've only ever had two witches before and they didn't live past a month. Well you know what they say about the third time. Did you know that your little human is in fact a witch? I hope I didn't ruin the surprise. Well I have to get her home and introduce her to the others and then the fun can really begin. Don't worry though you will see her again, I'll make sure to send you videos and pictures of our play dates. Oh and tell Jasper to keep an eye out for an email from me. I think he'll be particularly interested in one of my older toys. Say bye bye Bella"_

The camera focused on her unconscious form for a few seconds before the video ended. As Edward watched the screen go black he felt his knees connect with the floor. The thoughts of his family invaded his mind and he felt Carlisle place a hand on his shoulder but he could not bare to tear his gaze away from the tiny camera in his hand. If he did not get his Bella back, if she died by James's hand then this device held possibly the last images he would ever have of her. unconscious, in pain and at James's mercy.

* * *

It was decided that the Cullen's would return home to Forks after it became apparent that James had somehow managed to mask his scent and none of the Olympic Coven had been able to track him. The atmosphere in the Cullen household was so thick with anger and tension that Jasper found himself trembling with the effort to remain in control of not only his family's emotions but his own. Whilst it was true that he struggled with his thirst around Bella, the pesky little human had wormed her way inside his heart and it angered him that someone would dare hurt such an innocent creature. Alongside his anger was confusion. What had James meant when he said that an 'older toy' of his would be of interest to him? A cry came from next to him snapping him back to reality.

"Alice?" Everyone was focusing on the tiny pixie who was shaking her head from side to side, her mouth open in horror. Jasper grasped his wife by the tops of her arms and shook her gently.

"Alice, sweetheart what did you see?" Alice closed her eyes briefly before replying.

"Nothing. I saw nothing"

Emmett stood up straight, his hands curling into fists. "What does that mean?"

"It means that Bella's future just disappeared" Alice clung to her husband, her words laced with pain.

A loud crash rang through the room as the table shattered against the wall. Edward stood over the debris his body shaking. Just as Esme stepped towards her son a quiet 'Ping' chimed from the open laptop that sat upon the dining room table. Carlisle approached the device and saw the flashing symbol in the bottom right of the screen, indicating one new message. He scanned the faces of his family and with a half nod from Edward he opened the message.

**'Dear Cullen's,**

**This is a little thank you present from me for providing me with such a pretty new toy. The sounds she makes are like music to my ears, I do hope she lasts a while. Please accept this token of my appreciation.**

**James'**

Below the short message was a video file. After a seconds hesitation Carlisle clicked the mouse and the video began to play.

_Bella was chained to a wall, her arms and legs spread, a gagged tied tightly around her mouth. Her face was red and soaked with tears, a large bruise marred the left side. James appeared in the shot, a knife held loosely in his right hand. _

_"Let's play a game my pet. Let's play Truth or Dare. I'm going to as you some questions, you're going to answer with the truth and if I don't like the answers, well, I dare you not to scream." James removed the gag roughly._

_"Question one. What are you?" Bella's face was a mixture of fear and confusion._

_"Human, I-I'm human." James shook his head and drew the blade across her left thigh, the material of her jeans gave way easily and a small amount of blood seeped out of the wound._

_"Wrong. Try again Bella. What are you?" James made another cut about an inch lower than the first. Then he made a third before Bella cried out._

_"Witch! I'm a witch!" _

_"Good girl. Question two. What are your parents?" The conflict in Bella's eyes was clear, on the one hand she did not want to give this monster any information but she also did not want to suffer. Tears leaked out from the corner of her eyes and she tried to make a decision but it was made for her when the knife was plunged into her shoulder._

_"Witch! My mother's a witch"_

_"And your father?"_

_"Please, no more, please!" Bella sobbed._

_James was not done though as he slowly twisted the knife, his eyes black with hunger and excitement._

_"Answer the question!"_

_"Shifter he's a shifter!" Bella's screams echoed through the room, bouncing off the stone walls and floor. _

_"Tell me about your siblings" Not a question, James was done playing. He tore open her shirt and rested the blade against her skin. _

_"Start with your brother" _

_Bella shook her head and more tears fell. Another scream tore through her lips as the knife was pulled across her stomach. _

_"Tell me!"_

_"No!" _

_"Tell me or I will have the Cullen's hunted down and ripped to pieces! I'll start with Alice, sweet little Alice, I'll have her brought here and I'll let you watch as she's pulled apart and burned and it will be all your fault!"_

_"No!" Bella began thrashing wildly against the restraints._

_"Then tell me about your brother!"_

_"Tyson, his name is Tyson, he's a feline shifter like Charlie!"_

_"Now tell me about your sister" _

_"I can't"_

_"Then I can't guarantee the safety of the Cullen's, maybe after I'm done with Alice I can bring Esme in here and have a little fun with her before I kill her, slowly!"_

_"You don't understand! I can't tell you anything!"_

_"Why not Bella?"_

_"Because I don't know anything about her!"_

_James smiled and leaned into Bella's trembling form, his lips close to her ear, the tip of the knife dancing across her throat._

_"Would you like to meet her?"_

_Bella froze, her eyes opened wide._

_"That's right Bella, Your sister is here, I've been, 'enjoying', her company for a while now."_

_James suddenly rushed towards the camera and stared directly into the lens. _

_"How about it Cullen's. Would you like to meet Bella's sister? The one that the little witch kept a secret? Maybe she kept everything a secret from you. Not quite the innocent fragile little human she appeared to be is she? Tune in next time to see what other secrets I can pluck from those cute little lips of hers"_

The camera shut off and the room was silent. Each Cullen was seething in anger, not only had James threatened Alice and Esme but he had used them to manipulate Bella into giving out information that she clearly did not want to share. _  
_

"I'm going to kill him. I'm going to kill the evil son of a bitch and I'm going to enjoy doing it" Nobody was shocked at Emmett's outburst, what did shock them however was Esme's response.

The matriarch visibly shook with anger. She turned slowly putting her back to her family.

"Get in line"

With that the usually calm, loving woman exited the house, her husband followed close behind, his face betraying his anger.

Edward had not moved, his body was frozen in anger? Shock? Fear? Jasper struggled to get a lock on his emotions as they all tumbled over each other.

Alice threw her arms around her brothers waist, her body shaking with tearless sobs. Slowly she felt his arms fold around her.

"It's going to be OK Ali, we're going to get her back" _Please Bella just hold on._

* * *

Bella was shoved roughly into the room, her broken leg causing her to fall to the cold stone floor and the door was slammed shut. Her whole body hummed with pain, particularly her bloody shoulder. Pressing her hand to the wound she couldn't suppress the whimper of pain.

"Bella?" Bella spun her torso around quickly at the familiar voice. Dragging herself slowly to the back of the room, she saw a figure chained up in the left corner, almost completely bathed in darkness.

"It is you isn't is Bells?" Bella slowly made her way to the figure and tucked herself into their side, lacing the fingers of her right hand through theirs.

"Yeah Ty, it's me" The hand holding hers squeezed gently and she rested her aching head on his shoulder, taking a small amount of comfort in the fact that her brother was alive and she wasn't alone.

"They have Amelia."

"I know"

"This is bad Bells" Bella tightened her grip on his hand.

"I know"

The pair slipped into silence that seemed to go on forever until the door opened, bathing the room in light as a short, snarling blonde was pushed into the room, her body bloody and her clothes torn. The door slammed and once again the room grew dark except for the small beam of light coming through the small section of bars in the door. The blonde approached the corner slowly. Her green eyes met Bella's and she smiled gently before lowering herself to the floor.

"You must be Bella." The brunette nodded already having an idea as to who this girl was.

"I'm Amelia. It's nice to finally meet my baby sister."

* * *

A/N This is my first story guys and I hope it doesn't suck too much! Your feedback is greatly appreciated! I've been toying around with this idea for a few months and finally decided to post this chapter. I know it's a little fast paced but please bear with me obviously a lot of questions will have arose from this chapter for both you guys and the Cullen's but be patient and all will be revealed! Let me know what you thought, good? bad? be honest, I can take criticism if it helps me become a better writer! x


	2. Chapter 2

The Ties That Bind

Chapter 2.

Bella shivered and then whimpered at the pain that ripped through her shoulder and leg. The room was cold but she could feel the sweat begin to run down her neck, not a good sign. She watched as Amelia bent down and began to peel the bloody pieces of denim away from her leg forcing her to clench her teeth against the cries of pain that threatened to escape.

"Bella I need to set the bone and it's going to hurt but trust me sweetheart you'll feel better when it's done." The southern twang in her sisters voice made her think of Jasper and she found herself relaxing slightly.

"Do it" A few seconds later and Bella fell limp against her brothers side.

Amelia tore the bottom of her shirt and wrapped Bella's leg as tightly as she could, it wasn't much but at least it would stem the bleeding. Next she inspected the shoulder wound, the hole was deep and the skin torn and inflamed. Taking more of her shirt she dressed the wound as best she could.

"I can't do any more Amelia began to move away until Ty grabbed her arm causing her to flinch and hiss at him. Releasing her immediately he apologised and ran his eyes over her now exposed torso.

"You're hurt" Her body was covered in bruises and cuts, the bite marks on her hip and chest caused anger to surge through his veins and his eyes flashed amber, the dark irises elongating into thin slits.

"I'm fine, I've had worse."

"You shouldn't have had any" He reached his left arm towards her but the chain around his wrist restricted him. "Damn it I feel so useless!"

"Ty, it's not your fault"

"Isn't it? You got captured tracking me. James found out about Bella because of me. Now both my baby sisters are stuck in a torture camp with a sadistic vampire who gets his kicks by beating and touching you up and you say it's not my fault? Come on Amelia admit it, I screwed up!"

Amelia grabbed his face in her hands and forced him to look at her.

"Don't think that. Don't blame yourself for the actions of that monster. You are good and kind and strong and I need you to be strong right now, Bella needs her big brother"

"And what do you need?" This time it was the short blonde's eyes that shifted.

"I need to get my family out of this nightmare"

The determination and naked rage within her amber eyes combined with her dishevelled appearance made her look more than a little feral and caused Ty tensed slightly.

Both shifters suddenly looked towards the door of their cell. They could hear footsteps approaching. Ty pulled Bella closer whilst Amelia dropped into a crouch in front of her siblings, her nails grew into claws, her teeth extended and a menacing hiss began erupting through her tensed jaw, behind her Ty was making the same noise.

As the door opened and James entered the cell, it was like an elastic band snapping. Amelia pounced. James had not been expecting the shifter to have any strength left after their last play session together and so he was taken by surprise when the blondes claws pierced the marble skin of his stomach. Suddenly an electric charge pulsed through his abdomen and he growled in pain. So the little shifter had some secrets of her own. With a snarl the vampire grabbed a fist full of hair and tore her from his body before throwing her into the wall, her skull impacting with the concrete.

Amelia's body crumpled to the ground, a steady stream of blood pooled beneath her.

"You bastard! I'm going to tear you to pieces!" James just laughed and stamped his foot down onto the male shifters knee, shattering the joint.

"I'm the master here my pet" Without wasting another second James grabbed Bella by her injured shoulder and dragged her away from her brother, not an easy task when the young witch became aware of her siblings conditions and she began thrashing wildly, a small electric charge danced across her skin burning the vampires hands.

"What did you do?!" she screamed, her own voice echoing through the room and piercing her throbbing head.

"I taught them a lesson, one that you'll soon learn now move" A moment later Bella was being dragged through a long corridor filled with cells, the sound of her brother screaming Amelia's name was the last thing she heard before the blackness engulfed her once more.

* * *

With nothing more to do but wait, the Cullens found themselves separated within their own home, each trying to cope with their growing anxiety and anger over their missing human.

Edward was pacing in his bedroom, his head filled with thoughts of Bella and reeling from the images of the last video they had received. Alice was sat on the leather sofa, her eyes blank as she desperately searched the future for Bella.

Emmett found himself in their small gym room, to relieve some tension he threw himself into an intense weight lifting session but the images of Bella, battered and bloody left the large vampire shaking in anger and the weights soon found themselves in a heap across the room, the wall now sporting a large hole.

In the kitchen Esme worked herself into a cleaning frenzy, bleaching and scrubbing the already immaculate surfaces. Her maternal instincts were in overdrive and she found herself unable to remain still, the fear for the young human that she began to love as one of her own was so strong that she couldn't repress the tearless sobs that racked her chest.

Her husband had locked himself away in his study, the sounds of his footsteps as he paced echoed through the house. Though he was a man of great composure, knowing that someone he had come to care about was in serious danger unsettled him greatly.

Unlike the rest of her family, Rosalie did not care for Bella and had no intention of pretending otherwise. So whilst her family struggled with their worry she isolated herself and flipped casually through one of the many magazines that sat on top of the coffee table.

Unable to be around his family with their emotions so unchecked and needing time to sort through his own, Jasper made the decision to separate himself from them and instead sought the comfort of his own room. He had been alone for only a few moments when his computer alerted him to a new message. Curious the Texan vampire entered his inbox. There he found a short message and a video file.

**Jasper,**

**As promised here's a video of my latest play session with one of my favourite toys. She's a real firecracker.**

**I believe you two know each other from back in the day.**

**Enjoy**

**James**

_The camera focused and James moved to the side revealing a small female chained up against the stone wall, her head hung low, her hair falling across her face. _

_"Smile for the camera my pet, this video is for someone special. Would you like to know who?"_

_"Get on with it James, I'm rather tired today" The girl did not lift her head but her voice was clear and laced with defiance, she would not play any of his games today._

_"Now now my sweet, you shouldn't be so rude. Your dear Jasper will think you've forgotten your manners and you know how much those Texans love a lady with manners" _

_The reaction was instant, her whole body tensed and her head came up just a fraction enough to show the dangerous flash of anger in her eyes. James smiled._

_"Ah yes, dear Jasper, how long has it been since you saw your beloved? How long has it been since he moved on and forgot all about you? His first love, his would be bride. Did you know he's married now? He found his soul mate. He forgot all about his little southern bell. Tell me my sweet, does it hurt to know you mean nothing to him? That he has laid between another woman's legs, that she is his everything. Tell me, does your heart bleed?"_

_"Oh my heart bleeds alright, my heart bleeds purple piss" The force of the slap caused her neck to twist painfully but the girl just laughed which caused James to strike her again, this time he slammed his fist into her ribcage with a sickening crack as several ribs shattered. Coughing up a mouthful of blood, and blinking through the pain she simply smiled and cocked her head to the side._

_"That all you got?" _

_"Oh my dear, I am going to enjoy making you beg plead and scream for me to stop"_

_"James, you are not man enough to make me scream"_

_The vampire seethed in anger, the little bitch was making him look foolish and he would not stand for it._

_"We shall see, now be a dear and look into the camera. Let Jasper see how you betray him as I mark you, as I forever make you mine"_

_"Oh shut up and bite me already" and he did, the feel of his venom entering her veins was like having your body submerged into a tank of acid, her flesh, her bones, her organs burned and try as she might she could not stop the whimper of pain escaping, something that made her feel weak and dirty. Her body convulsed violently as her nerves burned. After a few minutes the pain eased, the antibodies in her blood destroying the venom but her body felt raw and she cried out his cold hand stroked across her stomach under the silk of her shirt. _

_"So strong, so beautiful" She cringed as his lips brushed the skin of her stomach and she tried to pull away but his teeth sunk into the skin of her hip releasing more venom into her already raw veins. She tried to stifle the scream but the pain was simply too much._

_"Was that so hard my pet?" James stroked a hand down her face causing her to shiver in pain and revulsion and he turned his attention to the camera._

_"Watch how she quivers at my touch. How the slightest brush of my skin upon hers makes her tremble."_

_"It makes me sick" James snarled and gripped her chin, the skin bruising under his touch._

_"I am your master, do not disrespect me"_

_"You are pathetic, get your hands off of me" James slammed the back of her head into the wall but she just laughed at him. His anger intensified and before he could stop himself he viciously twisted her neck bringing an abrupt end to her laughter._

A knock at the front door caused Jasper to pause the video. His body was trembling with anxiety. There was no way it could be her. She was human, it was over a century ago. But that voice. Before he could think any more his wife appeared at the door, causing a wave of guilt to crash down upon him, she had no idea.

Downstairs everyone had gathered in the living room, the vampires could sense Charlie's presence at the door but there were two strange scents surrounding him. Carlisle answered the door and was met by the sight of Bella's father flanked by a young blonde on his left and an even younger raven haired girl on his right.

"Charlie. What are you doing here?"

Before the man could speak, the blonde stepped forward.

"Mister Cullen, I am Agent Fox, this is Agent Anderson. We have an urgent matter to discuss with you and your coven about Isabella Swan and a member of our agency. May we come in?"

Carlisle looked at the girl with both curiosity and suspicion, the fact that she had addressed his family as a coven had not gone unnoticed.

"What about Bella?"

"Edward, son, perhaps we should invite our guests inside first. Please" Carlisle gestured the trio into his home and guided them into the living room.

"Tell me what you know about Bella" Carlisle placed a hand on his son's shoulder.

"Edward, calm down and give them a chance to explain."

"Carlisle, who are these girls?" Carlisle gestured for his wife to come to his side.

"These are Agents Fox and Anderson. This is my wife Esme and my children..."

"With all due respect Mr Cullen there will be time for introductions later, the matter we have to discuss with you can not wait" Carlisle nodded his head slightly and Agent Fox carried on.

"I need to know if either your coven or yourself received any videos's today that were...unusual"

"We received a video about half an hour ago of Bella in a distressing situation"

Agent's Fox and Anderson shared a look which told Carlisle that this was not what they were expecting.

"Did you receive any videos of anyone else?"

"What does that have to do with finding Bella?"

"Edward" The warning tone in his fathers voice caused the young vampire to stop and clench his jaw in frustration.

"I understand your frustration Mr Mason but we have reason to believe that someone in this house received a video of one of our Agents. If we can view the video then we will be a step close to finding her and Isabella. Now do any of you have the video?"

One by one the Cullens shook their heads, all except Jasper who stepped forward.

"I believe I have what you are looking for"

"After you then" Agent Fox waited until he turned around and then followed him through the house into the large bedroom. When both the agents and Charlie were gathered around the computer screen the Texan vampire waited for a sign to proceed before he pressed the play button.

_"James, what did you do!?" The voice came from behind the camera but even though it's owner could not be seen there was no mistaking their anger and rage._

_"Calm down Gale she's fine."_

_"It's not her I'm worried about"_

_James stalked away from the camera and the sound of a door opening and closing could be heard. The camera remained focused on the still form chained to the wall. For a minute nothing happened and then James returned. He knelt down in front of the camera and smirked._

_"Even in death she is a thing of beauty. I can't imagine what you must be feeling right now Jasper. To finally see your beloved again after such a very long time only to have her life stolen away from her before your very eyes. But don't worry, my pet has a problem staying dead"_

_"Talking to yourself is a sign of madness James"_

_The vampire tensed, her fearless attitude clearly riled him up. _

_"You see Jasper, the little kitten just won't stay dead"_

_Now the girl lifted her head, her eyes however were not on James but they stared directly into the lens._

_"I'll stay dead when you are buried sixty feet under a pile of rubble"_

_James growled and flashed to her side, he grabbed a fistful of hair and yanked her forwards, the restraints tearing under the pressure._

_"Well say goodbye to Jasper my pet, it's time for you to go back into your cage"_

_As he walked he dragged the girl roughly behind him and with one final wink into the lens, he shut the camera off._

* * *

The video ended and the Cullens looked at each other in confusion. Charlie ran a shaking hand over his face and whispered something into his palm. Jasper who was closest heard the single word and his body went rigid.

"It can't be her." Charlie looked at him, sadness swirling in his eyes.

"Jasper..."

"No. It can't be her, she was human, she should be dead"

"Jazz?" Jasper looked down at his wife and his guilt and pain were simply too much. Without a word to his family he ran from the room.

Agent Fox looked to her right.

"How long?"

Agent Anderson examined her watch.

"She was down for exactly three minutes"

"Her regen' rate is usually thirty seconds. What's her count?"

"Three times that we know of"

As Agent Fox opened her mouth to speak, the voice in her earpiece distracted her and she tuned into the distressed ghost whisperer on the end of the line.

"Maria slow down. When did this happen?...What did she tell you?...Do you have any idea where that is?...A clue? What the hell does that mean?...Alright stay on alert I'll be in touch" She raised a hand to her ear piece and ended the call before turning to her companion.

"Maria just had a visit from Amelia. She was able to give her a general location have Tom do a search, get us a radius and have him send the information to our IWD's"

Agent Anderson began talking rapidly into her earpiece whilst Agent Fox turned to Charlie.

"Charlie, we will get her back, we'll get all of them back" Charlie just nodded but he did not lift his head from his hands.

"Will someone please tell us what is going on. Who are you? And who is that girl?"

Charlie turned to Esme, the woman was clearly shaken by the video and he sighed. His family was in danger and the secrets he had worked so hard to keep buried were being dug up faster than he could believe.

"Her name is Amelia, and she is my daughter"

The Cullen's were shocked by the news but nothing could have prepared them for what happened next.

"Amelia Grace Fox was my fiancée, and the love of my life"

Jasper had returned.

* * *

A/N Well what did you think of this chapter? I know it is a little confusing but all will be revealed. Did you guys like? Let me know and thank you to everyone who is following this story, has Favorited it and reviewed. Stay tuned for chapter 3 x


	3. Chapter 3

The first thing that Amelia became aware of was the sticky wetness that coated the side of her face, shortly followed by the throbbing headache and nausea. Slowly her other senses came flooding back and she became aware of a voice shouting her name.

"I'm alright"

Ty stopped struggling against his restraints and stared at his sister, she was lying in a broken and bloody heap on the floor across from him, not exactly what he would call alright.

"Amelia do you have any idea how long you were down? I thought you weren't coming back"

Amelia slowly sat up and braced herself against the cold stone, her breathing slightly laboured and her eyes closed.

"Sorry"

"Six minutes. You were down for six minutes." Amelia just nodded gently.

"Where's Bella?"

"That bastard took her, he killed you and dragged her out of here. Damn it Amelia we need to get out of here"

"I'm working on it"

Ty watched his sister pull herself together for a moment as he contemplated what she had said and he found himself unable to suppress his excitement.

"You have a plan!"

Amelia glanced sideways at her brother, her cracked lips pulling into a smirk.

"I have some powerful friends"

"Why haven't you contacted them before, you've been here for months"

"Well until today James didn't seem very eager to kill me and you know suicide isn't my style" Ty flinched slightly at the reminder of his past mistake. Amelia had never forgiven him for ending one of his own lifetimes, an act that he regretted everyday since.

"Besides, I didn't have the strength to hold a connection for long enough to pass a message on until Bella showed up. I'd say a couple of days at the most before we are found."

"What if Bella doesn't have a couple of days? You've seen her injuries and James has her right now, who knows what state she'll come back in. Have you thought about what we might have to do?"

"Tyson" Her eyes and tone were full of warning but he pushed on. He knew he needed his sisters support but her job was causing a major conflict of interests.

"Look Amelia, I know that you obey and enforce a whole bunch of laws against this kind of thing but it's not some stranger it's Bella, our sister. We can't let her die because some stupid law says we can't change her."

"Ty it's not just about the law or the organisation it's about Bella. She's found her mate, who happens to be a vampire"

"So? Changing her will give her more time with him" Amelia rolled her eyes and sighed in frustration. Tyson was very well known in their family for completely missing the bigger picture.

"So, if you change her you give her a maximum of ten lifetimes, that's one thousand-ish years. However her mate can give her the chance at eternity. It would be selfish to rob her of that chance."

"It would be selfish to let her die"

The siblings stared at each other, neither willing to back down. Both knew that Bella would probably die by James's hand and that they had a way to prolong her existence but they were both aware of the cost, and that maybe the price would be too high for their sister to forgive.

* * *

The thoughts of his family bombarded him and Edward found it hard to concentrate on his own mind. The young vampire was torn. On the one hand he was filled with concern and anguish for his missing mate and he wanted to do everything in his power to find her and bring her home. Yet another side of him felt compelled to stay with his family. Alice, his baby sister and admittedly his favourite member of their unconventional family was hurting and he ached to comfort her and maybe inflict some damage upon her husband, but a single look into his head told him that Jasper was also hurting and Edward found himself feeling sympathy for his Texan brother.

Jasper was lost in his own thoughts. The images flashed through his mind like a movie trailer.

_ "That is a beautiful horse" A seventeen year old Jasper stopped brushing his mare's mane and turned around. Her hair fell in golden ringlets to her slender waist, her emerald eyes were bright and framed with a fan of dark lashes and her pink lips were curved in a gentle smile. She was beautiful._

_"Thank you kindly Miss. But I fear her beauty struggles in comparison to your own"_

_Her smile grew, as did the blush on her cheeks and the very sight of it warmed his heart._

_"What is her name?"_

_"Destry"_

_"And what may I ask is the name of her rider?"_

_"Jasper Marshall Whitlock" She extended a hand to him which he grasped and kissed gently._

_"Amelia Grace Fox"_

_ ..._

_Her laughter rang in his ears like a choir of angels singing just for him. He watched as she spread her arms wide and twirled in the long grass, her hair loose and her eyes closed. Smiling widely he made his way towards her and bowed deeply._

_"Miss Fox would you honour me with a dance" She smiled and curtseyed._

_"Mr Whitlock it would be my pleasure" He took her by the hand and together they danced and twirled through the field until the sun went down._

_ ..._

_They lay side by side on a blanket looking up at the clear nights sky. The field was empty apart from themselves and Destry who stood grazing nearby. The air was warm and the moon was full and bright, it's light reflected in her eyes and she gazed into his. He brushed an errant curl from her face and his hand lingered on her cheek. _

_"I love you Jasper" He froze in surprise for a second before responding._

_"And I love you" The kiss that followed was gentle and sweet and full of love and nothing like the stolen pecks they had shared in the past few months._

_ ..._

_He tensed as he waited for her answer, even Destry fidgeted between their legs. He felt her shift closer to him, her arms tightening around his waist and her breath tickled his ear._

_"You had better not die out there Major Whitlock. I don't want to bury my husband until I am old and grey"_

_It took him a few seconds to realise what she had said and when it registered he swore he would never be happier than he was in that moment. Turning his head to the side he locked eyes with his now fiancée._

_"I will always come back to you."_

_..._

_As he held himself above her and stared into her eyes he felt overwhelmed by the barrage of emotions that swelled within him. He felt a love more intense than anything he had ever experienced coupled with a desire so strong that his body quivered with the anticipation of what they were about to do. But he also felt fear. He was afraid to hurt her, he was afraid to leave with his fellow soldiers in the morning, he was afraid that he would not return and he would never know what it would be like to be a husband, a father. _

_"Jasper, I love you"_

_He lay his weight upon her, his lips by her ear, her hand wove itself through his hair and the other gently stroked across his back._

_"I love you" Her hand tightened in his hair painfully as he pushed forward. He could die tomorrow but right now he was with her, they were together, they had tonight and he would spend it showing her how much he loved her incase he didn't get another chance._

_..._

_The pain was like nothing he had ever experienced and he knew that this was the end. The tears fell and as his life ended the image of his beloved flashed through his mind. Her waterfall of golden curls, her emerald eyes, her flushed cheeks and her lips mouthing I Love You._

_"Amelia, I love you. I'm sorry"_

_Jasper Marshall Whitlock, youngest Major in the Texas Cavalry would never go home._

Alice stood frozen in shock. Jasper had been very quiet about his human life and she had no idea that he had loved someone else. The small vampire felt conflicted. She wanted to grab her husband and shake him until he revealed everything else that he had kept a secret but she could also see the pain in his eyes and she desperately wanted to make it go away. And on top of it all Alice could feel the slow simmer of jealousy bubbling inside her heart.

She quickly began searching her future and sure enough Jasper remained securely by her side. A scan of her husbands future however threw up even more questions. There were dark spots, and plenty of them but when she could see him he was happy and healthy. What did it mean? One thing she did know was that there was no sign of this Amelia in either of their futures, the relief would have made her go weak at the knees were she still human.

Charlie felt like someone had drove an icicle into his heart. His eldest child and only son had disappeared several months ago then before he could search for him Bella, his beautiful baby girl had returned to him.

He remembered the terror he felt when he realised that she had gotten herself involved with vampires but his fears were laid to rest when he realised what the bond between Bella and Edward was and he knew that the vampire would let no harm come to his baby girl. Then she informed him that she was being hunted and that she had to leave Forks to draw this James guy away. Once again he was torn between the aching desire to bundle her up and lock her away for her own safety, and trusting her and her vampires to keep her safe.

A wave of anger caused him to hiss, they had failed to keep her safe and now she was god knows where all alone! Except that she wasn't alone, she was with Amelia, her sister. His first daughter and the baby he believed he would never see again after her mother hid her away. How long had it been? A century? No it was longer and there wasn't a moment that his heart didn't hurt and his arms didn't ache to hold her, and in the space of mere moments he had found that she was alive and beautiful but she was captured and in serious danger. With that one knock on the door his entire world was thrown into chaos;

_He had just gotten up from the couch and was making his way to the kitchen in order to get another beer, the worry he felt over Bella's absence making him drink more, not that the alcohol had that big of an impact on his unnaturally high metabolism but he enjoyed the taste if nothing else. The knock on the door startled him._

_Focusing on his heightened senses he picked up two strange heart beats, one too fast and one too slow to be human. That coupled with the strange scents had the centuries old shifter on guard._

_Making sure his gun was in easy reach he slowly opened the door and came face to face with the last thing he expected. There on his doorstep were two young females._

_One was tiny, maybe sixteen years of age, with dark hair and eyes the same chocolate brown as his daughter. The other was older, eighteen or nineteen with long blonde hair pulled back into a serious looking braid and ice blue eyes. The two girls were the complete opposites of one another in looks but their attire was similar. Dark blouses and black pencil skirts screamed business but it was the badges they wore around their necks that caught his attention and made his heart freeze._  
_The gold symbol of a set of scales above a pentagram with the letters 'O.M.S' stood out proudly against the black of the badge. There was only one reason for the O.M.S being here._

_"Where are my children?"_

_"Chief Swan, perhaps we should move this conversation inside?"_

_The question was of course rhetorical, one did not simply deny the O.M.S anything. So biting his tongue he stepped aside to allow the girls entry to his home. After showing them to the living room and offering them refreshments, which they declined, he jumped straight into business._

_"Please, I know about the Organisation and since I have not committed a crime you must be here about my children, where are they?"_

_"Your children are in the hands of a vampire named James" the dark haired one said._

_"Bella?"_

_"Yes"_

_"And Tyson? Does he also have my son?"_

_"Tyson was the first to be captured and we have reason to believe that he was taken over four months ago."_

_He felt the room spin and he lowered his head into his hands. As his head lowered he caught sight of the gold emblem once again._

_"Why are category sevens informing me of my children's disappearances?"_

_The sound of a folder being pushed across the coffee table made him look up. The blonde was leaning towards him, one hand placed over the black file._

_"Because Tyson and Bella are also category seven, and so is your other daughter"_

_He found himself snatching the folder from the blonde and when he opened it he was greeted with the image of another young blonde and he noted the uncanny resemblance, the main difference though was their eyes. The girl in the picture had the greenest eyes he had ever seen._

_"Her name is Amelia Grace Fox, she is your daughter and a very close friend of ours. She was also taken. About two months ago she received intelligence that Tyson had been spotted in France and she went to apprehend the source. It was a trap. We found the source, a reptilian shifter and he has told us that James is working with an Unseelie fairy and they plan to capture all known category sevens, for what purpose we do not know" the blonde paused to allow him time to digest the information, he had not stopped staring at the picture._

_"Why do you look like my daughter?"_

_"Her mother raised Amelia and myself as sisters and over the years we unconsciously glamoured ourselves to look like twins."_

_"Then you're a shifter?"_

_"A werewolf actually. Both my parents are werewolves."_

_"Born female werewolf. Impressive. And you?" He asked the dark haired girl who up until this point had remained rather quiet._

_"Aurora Anderson. I do not know who my father is but my birth mother is The First."_

_He was shocked. The child of The First. Her mother was the original female vampire, the only female vampire able to conceive and bear children._

_"Birth mother?"_

_"I too was adopted and raised by Honour but at a much later age. Amelia and Rhea are my sisters for all intents and purposes"_

_"How old are you girls?"_

_"I was born on October 10th 1829, exactly a week after Amelia" _

_"I was born a lot later, on September 13th 1918"_

_Charlie smiled slightly at Aurora. "The same day as Bella"_

_Rhea placed a comforting hand on his arm. "Chief Swan..."_

_"Charlie. If you are family to my daughter you may as well call me by my name"_

_"Charlie, we didn't just come here to inform you of your children's disappearances. We understand that like werewolves feline shifters have a bond, particularly close family. We were hoping that maybe you could sense where your children are"_

_"If I knew that I wouldn't be sitting here now. The truth is that I haven't shifted in over a century so my powers are weak, I've never met Amelia so there's no bond to follow there and Bella only inherited my mental block, everything else she got from her mother. Surely you should be able to track Amelia"_

_The agents looked trouble, something that made him worry even more._

_"Her I.W.D is offline and our facial recognition software hasn't picked her up since she disappeared. Her tracker and earpiece were left abandoned and to be honest the only way we know she is alive is that the magical cuffs she placed on the source are still locked and they stay that way until the person that locks them removes them or either the prisoner or captor are killed. We also have Maria our ghost whisperer on standby, if Amelia dies she will seek Maria out. So far we've heard nothing"_

_Something suddenly clicked in mind._

_"The vampires name is James. I know some people that might be able to give us more answers and maybe help us find my kids."_

_Before he could say any more, Aurora began speaking rapidly into her earpiece. Then both girls stood._

_"Charlie we just got word that Amelia's face appeared on a computer in this town and we are leaving now to investigate. Would you like to come with us?"_

_"Of course, where are we going?"_

_Rhea looked at the device that was built into her wrist._

_"420 Woodcroft Avenue. Do you know who lives there?"  
_

_"Yeah, it's the Cullens. They're vampires and one of them is Bella's mate."_

Aurora stopped typing on her I.W.D and shook her head at Rhea.

"No good, something is blocking the scanners, I think we need to send in a re-con team to do a sweep of the area to see if they pick up anything that looks suspicious.I have a feeling there's some outside interference at work here."

"Do we have a general location?"

"General being the key word, the size of the target zone is roughly nine miles round."

"We need a tighter grid, have Tom and his team start scanning that area for increased traffic that should tighten up our search area and have Maria stay alert if Amelia tried to get a message through once she's bound to try again and her clock is counting down."

"Would someone like to tell us what the hell is going on? Who the hell are you people and what is that thing?"

"Emmett, language" the large vampire nodded in apology towards Esme.

Rhea stepped forward and raised her left arm pressing a button on her I.W.D, the device seemed to separate into two screens.

"Emmett Bernard Dale McCarty, eldest child to Helen and Bernard McCarty. Born 1915 in Tennessee, changed into a Vampire in 1935 by Carlisle Jalen Cullen following a would-be fatal accident involving a bear. Is responsible for the deaths of multiple humans. Current diet is Vegetarian with particular preference to grizzly bear. Married to Rosalie Lillian Hale. Powers of notability are increased physical strength. Category assignment is 6." Before she could finish Emmett grabbed her wrist, right over the device causing a large electrical shock to flow through both their bodies. Without a seconds hesitation Rhea grabbed his hand and forced his elbow upwards, breaking the appendage before kicking him in the stomach, a move that sent him sailing across the room.

Rosalie growled and charged with the intention of defending her husband, Aurora however had other ideas and stepped in between the blondes.

"Stop!" she commanded and to everyone's surprise, Rosalie seemed to freeze mid attack, her body tense and her teeth bared. Edward dropped into a crouch and readied himself to attack but Charlie stopped him just as he charged.

"She's the child of The First!"

Carlisle grabbed his son before he could pounce.

"Nobody attack!"

"Carlisle what's going on?"

"She is the daughter of The First. She has the inherited ability to control all vampires, she can bend you to her will and kill you with a single command. Agent Anderson, Agent Fox please forgive my children, they were only defending their brother"

"Mr Cullen there is nothing to forgive at this moment do not worry." The young vampire smiled gently.

Rhea stood from her crouch, straightened out her blouse and stepped forward.

"Make no mistake, every vampire in this room is guilty of crimes that could see you rotting in the O.M.S cells for the rest of your unnatural lives. Pull a stunt like that again and I will personally put you there."

"Easy Rhea. Now Mrs McCarty I am going to release you but be warned, the next time you attempt to attack a member of the O.M.S I will not be quite so forgiving. So my question to you is, are you capable of controlling yourself or do you need to stay in a time out for a little longer?"

"She'll behave, and look I'm sorry about grabbing you I didn't mean anything by it I swear" Emmett now stood next to his wife, a hand on her shoulder.

"It's ok, let me explain the device to you. This is an I.W.D or Intelligent Wrist Device. We use them like a computer but we can also pull up information about every supernatural that the O.M.S database has in it's system by scanning the supernatural."

"O.M.S?" Rhea flicked her eyes up to Esme.

"The Organisation for the Monitoring of Supernaturals"

"Kind of like the FBI or the CIA?"

"Yes, but we have better gadgets." the pair shared a smile.

"So what was that shock?"

"That was the devices warning system. Since these devices are so valuable only three people have them, myself, Aurora and Amelia and each device is only keyed to the owners DNA and fingerprints meaning only I can touch mine and so on and so forth. The devices are wired into our central nervous systems. They cannot be removed and if any attempt is made to remove the device a strong electrical shock is delivered as a warning. If you hadn't let go and you had pulled the device would have self destructed taking this house off the map. The amount of things that we can do with the devices is phenomenal so you can understand now why you mustn't touch."

Emmett raised his hands in surrender before placing them into his pockets.

"We understand that you will have questions and we promise to answer what we can but we would prefer to do so after we get our people home. We have reason to believe that you know the vampire that is responsible for the kidnappings and we also believe that he is working alongside an Unseelie fairy"

"Come again?" Esme gave a warning glare to her son but Emmett just shrugged his shoulders.

"A fairy of the Unseelie court, bad fairies if you will. We think this is the reason we cannot locate their hideout as it's likely that the fairy has taken their base into a secondary dimension and is probably using a fairy web to suppress all technology and Amelia and Tyson's feline powers as neither have shifted since they disappeared."

"How do you know they haven't?" Rhea just flashed her I.W.D to Charlie who got the message pretty quickly.

"We need any information you can give us about this James, what he's like, what abilities he has anything that can help us figure out who he's working with and why they want our category sevens"

"What are these categories? You said that Emmett was a six what does that mean?"

"It's a classification of supernatural abilities. There are seven categories one being human seven being exceptionally powerful. Regular vampires with no active abilities such as Mrs Cullen and Mrs McCarty are category four. Werewolves, Rodent and Pisces or aquatic shifters, Ghost whisperers, Banshees and some Sirens are also a four. Mr Cullen is a category five. As are most Avian shifters, some Witches, Seelie fairies and most Healers. Unseelie fairies, Dream Walkers, Memory manipulators, Elementals, Psychokinetics, Telekinetics, Witches, Chameleons, Centaurs, Ursine or Bear shifters, Feline and Canine shifters are all sixes. Charlie, Mr McCarty and Mrs Whitlock are all sixes. You Mr Mason are a seven as is Mr Whitlock, Aurora, Amelia, Tyson, Bella and myself along with several members of the Volturi. My own son is a category five. Don't looked so surprised Mr Mason, I may look nineteen but I am over one hundred and seventy years old."

The Cullens looked to be in varying stages of confusion and sighed and smiled gently.

"I know this is a lot to take in and it's all very overwhelming and I'm sorry but we are running out of time..." Rhea placed a hand to her earpiece. "Maria what do you have for us?...What are their status's?...You did great Maria. Get those co-ordinates to us now and transfer me to Tom. Tom? I need you to send Combat One and Two... Yes I said Combat one... Tom he has three category sevens, one of which is Amelia so yes I'm sure we need Combat one. I also want a re-con team sent to the area to do a sweep. Send over two medical teams and a containment team. I want Scott to come here and bring Timmy with him we need to get a message to Amelia. Finally send Warren and John, Aurora is about twenty six hours from a stasis sleep and I need her guarded... Yes I'm aware of what time of the month it is and I am fine I don't need a babysitter and no neither does Amelia...I will thank you keep me updated"

Aurora turned to the Cullens who now looked even more confused.

"Amelia died again and sought out Maria. She was able to give us a better description of her location. Rhea is ordering the teams for the rescue, I'm afraid that for a little while at least all we can do is wait."

"How are they?"

"They are in bad shape Mr Cullen. They are all injured, dehydrated and starved but at least they are alive and together. We should have them home in less than twelve hours. Mr Mason, Mr Whitlock, Charlie. I know that you all have people involved in this that you love and are anxious to see again but you need to trust us to handle this. If you interfere you will get them killed. I need to know that you will cooperate or i will detain you."

All three nodded. Before anyone could speak a figure glided through the wall.

"Miss Anderson, Miss Fox my apologies. I was unable to stop her."

"Auntie Rora is mummy home yet?"

Aurora bent down to scoop the little girl up.

"I'm sorry sweetheart she isn't but she will be very soon. Alright?"

The little girl nodded then looked around the room at all the strange faces until she spotted one she recognised. She closed her tiny fist around the locket she wore and smiled brightly.

"Hi daddy"

Even though he knew it was physically impossible, Jasper Whitlock swore he was dreaming.


	4. Chapter 4

"I don't understand, this is impossible"

"Which part? The dude that can walk through walls or the fact that you're a daddy?"

Rosalie slapped her husband and hissed at him to shut up.

"Mr Whitlock, perhaps it would be better if the four of us spoke in private?" Rhea said as she motioned to herself, Aurora and the child.

Jasper nodded slowly and followed the agents downstairs into the kitchen. The rest of the Cullens dispersed with everyone but Carlisle and Esme going out to hunt. Alice was extremely reluctant to leave but her family convinced her that Jasper needed to hear what the agents had to say.

Carlisle, Charlie and Esme began preparing the house for the arrival of more guests and although all three could hear the conversation downstairs, they at least pretended they couldn't.

Jasper stood with his back against the wall and his arms crossed, his gaze never leaving the little girl, who was now sat in Aurora's lap playing with the locket around her neck.

"Her name is Charlotte Marshae Whitlock Fox. She was born November 12th 1863, nearly seven months after you disappeared. She's four years old, a half feline shifter and she's Amelia's whole universe. She turned her ageing off before her fifth birthday. Amelia was distraught because she feared she would never get to see her baby, your baby, grow up but she loves her regardless."

Jasper drank in the little girl's features, from her sandy blonde curls that tumbled to the middle of her back, to her bright green eyes framed by long dark lashes and her tiny button nose that had a light dusting of freckles across it. She wore a dusty rose short sleeved dress with white tights and a pair of tan cowboy boots. A fact that made him smile gently.

"She's beautiful."

Rhea nodded and sighed.

"Losing you nearly killed Amelia. I truly believe that if she hadn't found out that she was pregnant she would have given up. That little girl is the only thing that has kept her alive since you've been gone, and she is the reason that I know we will get her back alive."

"Does she know about me?"

"Amelia has always known about you"

"Then why didn't I know she was alive? That we had a daughter?"

"Because being with you is forbidden. Amelia is a hybrid and she should have been killed at birth but her mother, Honour was the head of the O.M.S and in return for her baby being allowed to live she sacrificed Amelia's future, she can never leave and she must never break any of the laws we enforce. When you were changed by Maria, Amelia knew that she could never see you again."

"Why not?"

"Interspecies breeding is a level one offence punishable by termination"

"What does that mean?"

"If you and Amelia had a child both the baby and Amelia would be killed."

"But I can't have children now, I'm a vampire"

"A male vampire can have children with a female human. Amelia is half human."

Jasper was shocked. Never before had he heard of male vampires and female humans breeding. But what surprised him more was the overwhelming feeling of anger at the law that forbid the two of them being together again. He loved his wife, he loved Alice he knew he did, so why did the sight of his daughter and the knowledge that he could never be with Amelia make him hurt so badly?

"Would you like to meet your daughter?"

He could walk away. He had spent over a century ignorant to the fact that he was a father, he could turn around and walk away. But he didn't want to.

"I would like that very much"

Rhea smiled and walked around the table where she leaned down to whisper something into Aurora's ear. The agent nodded and stood up, placing Charlotte back onto the chair. Together the girls walked out.

"We'll just be in the other room"

Jasper stood hesitantly by the wall. He was alone with his four year old child and he had no idea what to do. Charlotte smiled at him and continued to play with her locket.

"That's a very pretty locket"

"It's mummy's I'm keeping it safe. Daddy?"

"Yes darlin'?"

"I'm hungry"

Jasper walked to the fridge, knowing that Esme kept it stocked for Bella.

"Then we'll just have to fix that won't we"

"Yes please!"

As he scanned the food items he realised that he had no idea what a four year old would eat so he grabbed the first thing he saw which happened to be a bag of carrots.

Amelia scrunched up her face and shook her head. Next he tried a bag of grapes and again his daughter refused. He was contemplating a bag of apples when he felt a tug on his trousers. He hesitated a moment before he bent over to scoop her up. He held her on his hip with one hand and held the door to the fridge with the other.

"Alright darlin, show your silly daddy what you like"

"Milk!" Charlotte reached into the fridge and pulled out the bottle with both hands.

"Milk it is. Now what would you like to eat?"

"Cookies!" she flashed him a bright smile and in that instant he realised that refusing her would be an impossibility. So reaching into a cupboard he pulled out a packet of cookies and after pouring her a glass of milk he carried the food and his daughter into the living room where his parents, Charlie and the Agents were sitting. He slowly sank into the armchair, his daughter on his lap.

"Milk and cookies Lotte? Could you be any cuter?" The little girl in question smiled at Rhea then slowly drank from her glass and when she removed it she had a thick white milk moustache. Jasper smiled before wiping it off with his thumb.

"Jasper, she's beautiful"

"I have to agree son, she is quite the little stunner"

Jasper nodded at his parents and quickly opened the bag of cookies for his daughter, who offered everyone in the room a cookie before taking one for herself.

"And her manners are impeccable! No thank you sweetheart" Esme brought a hand to her chest as she watched her son and his daughter. It was a beautiful picture that she believed she would never see.

"What I'd like to know is why neither of us was informed of her existence"

Rhea and Aurora shared a look before the former opened her mouth to speak.

"Charlie Amelia has her reasons and we understand that you are frustrated but you have to understand that she doesn't know you"

"That isn't my fault. I never stopped looking for her, your organisation took her from me"

"To save her life"

"Now you are keeping my granddaughter from me. Explain to me how that is fair"

Before anyone could speak the occupants of the room tensed. The rest of the Cullens were returning. Jasper was torn. His wife would no doubt be hurt by his new-found closeness to his daughter but he wasn't ready to let her go. As if sensing his inner turmoil, Carlisle and Esme moved to flank him, the former placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Alice will just have to understand."

"Alright where's the little squirt, it's time she met her awesome uncle Emmett" the large vampire came bounding into the room, excitement and childish glee written all over his face. Jasper tensed as his brother surged across the room and headed for his daughter, Charlotte however seemed completely calm and simply offered the open bag of cookies to Emmett.

"No thanks squirt, I prefer my treats small, blonde and decked in cowboy boots" Charlotte giggled as she was picked up gently and held above the vampires face. Emmett brought her down and took a dramatic sniff.

"Yep, this little one smells delicious, I think I could eat her with just one bite!" With a dramatic roar Emmett began to nibble the little girls stomach causing an erruption of giggles that had all of the occupants in the room smiling and laughing along.

"No, daddy help!"

Quick as a flash Jasper jumped from his seat and plucked his daughter from Emmetts grip and sped across the room where he held her tightly against his chest.

"Dude no fair I wasn't done with my snack!"

Emmett began stalking towards them until Charlotte put out her tiny hand and gave him her best glare.

"No! Stop you bad one!"

The surprised look on Emmett's face and the extremely serious one on Charlotte's once again had the entire room in hysterics.

"Jazz, can we talk please" Jasper sighed as he nodded to his wife, he knew this talk was coming but he had hoped they could wait a while.

Jasper walked over to Rhea and Aurora and placed his daughter with them.

"Daddy don't go!" the little girl cried.

"Lotte, don't whine" Rhea gently chastised her niece. Jasper knelt down so he was on her level.

"Darlin' I won't be long and when I come back we can spend as long as you want together"

"Promise?"

"I promise"

"Jasper, now" Esme frowned at the behaviour of her daughter, she certainly didn't think Alice was being fair. Jasper got up and followed his wife outside, flinching at the strong wave of frustration, anger and jealousy that came from her. This would be a long, difficult talk.

* * *

Bella felt the inky blackness begin to subside and she began to feel all of her injuries. Her body burned but she couldn't suppress the shudders that caused her to whimper in pain. The pounding in her head became more intense as she got closer to consciousness. Her wounds were infected and from her symptoms she could tell that the infection was becoming systemic. She would die if she didn't get to a doctor soon.

Thinking of doctors made her think of Carlisle which led her thoughts to Edward. She felt the tears prickle her eyes as her mind flashed through her memories of him. She wished he was here with her, no she didn't she wouldn't ever wish for Edward to be in this place with these monsters. She felt herself fallen back into the darkness when suddenly hands grabbed her face.

"Bella! Stay with me! Bella!"

The voice seemed familiar but she couldn't place it.

"Come on Bella wake up!"

But she was so tired.

"Honey I know you're tired but I need you to wake up" The southern twang reminded her of Jasper but this voice was female. Who was that?

"It's Amelia, please open your eyes for me" Amelia? Her sister?

"Yes Bella it's me now come on show me them brown eyes"

Bella struggled to open her eyes and when she did she was greeted with the sight of her bloody and bedraggled sister hovering over her.

"Oh thank god I thought I lost you for a minute there" Bella shook her head, a move that she regretted quickly.

"Easy Bella, you're hurt pretty badly"

"You too" she said as she took in the state of her sister.

"I'm alright sweetheart it's you I'm worried about"

"How's she doing?" Bella tried to turn her head to face her brother but her body didn't want to cooperate.

"She's not good"

"Ty?"

"I'm here Bells"

"Good" Bella drew in a shaky breath. "It hurts"

"What hurts the most?"

"Everything" Amelia frowned, she didn't know what to do.

"Bells, we can make the pain go away"

"Tyson!"

"Amelia she has a right to choose"

"Choose?" The darkness was creeping up on her again and she was struggling to stay awake.

"You can become like us Bells, I can change you"

"Tyson enough!"

"Amelia she's dying!"

"I know but this isn't right she'll hate us!"

"Never" Why would she hate them, they were her family.

"Bella you don't understand what he's offering, what you'll lose"

"What?"

"Bella, Tyson can turn you into a shifter you'll heal and you'll live but it comes at a cost that I'm not sure you'll be willing to pay"

"Tell me"

"I know about Edward, I know he's immortal. Bella as a feline shifter we are given the gift of nine lifetimes. But we are not immortal and we are immune to vampire venom"

Bella frowned in confusion for a minute, if being changed would save her life why was her sister against it? Slowly it began to dawn on her, if she let Tyson change her, she could never become a vampire. She would lose out on the chance of an immortal life with Edward.

"I don't want to die"

"Bella you have to be sure, there's no going back from this decision" Was she sure? Would Edward still want her if she wasn't human? If she didn't let her brother save her she'd die, at least this way she had a chance at escaping and going back to Edward. And shifters were strong and fast, Edward wouldn't have to be so worried about hurting her.

"I want to be changed"

* * *

Jasper folded his arms as he waited for his wife to speak, he could feel that she was trying to calm her emotions, and failing.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Alice..."

"No Jazz, I am your wife you should have told me."

"I thought she was dead and my past wasn't important"

"You were in love and were going to get married, that's pretty important Jazz!" Jasper said nothing.

"Did you know about the child?"

"Charlotte"

"Excuse me?"

"Her name is Charlotte and no I had no idea, like I said I thought that Amelia was dead"

Alice bristled visibly at his defensive tone, she wasn't used to her husband standing up to her.

"You seemed pretty cosy with the child"

"Alice for the last time her name is Charlotte, and she is my daughter whether you like it or not"

"How do you know? We don't know these people they could be lying to you and you are just so quick to believe them"

"I know Amelia and Rhea and I know that they would never lie about something like this, they aren't like that"

"You don't know them! How can you trust them?!"

"Because I trust my abilities and neither of those girls in there were being deceptive. I don't understand what the problem is Alice."

"The problem is that my husband is too busy playing happy families with a child that has come out of nowhere to realise what his behaviour is doing to his wife!"

"Well darlin' I'm sorry but I will not ignore my daughter because you are jealous. Now Alice I love you but that is my child and I have a right to know her and you are just going to have to deal with that" Jasper turned to walk away but Alice's words stopped him cold.

"Is it the child you're interested in, or the mother?"

* * *

Edward sat in his room, his head in his hands. All he could think about was Bella. He smelt Charlie before he heard the knock on his door.

"Come in"

"Edward, I was hoping we could talk"

"Of course Chief Swan"

Charlie leaned against the door, his arms folded across his chest.

"So you know that I know you're all vampires" Edward nodded. "And you know that I am a feline shifter" Again Edward nodded. "And you know that Bella is a witch" This time Edward nodded slower, his face creasing into a frown.

"Don't be pissed that she didn't tell you, it's not something she advertises. Look, Bella is the only one of my children that didn't inherit my shifter powers, it makes her feel like an outsider because she doesn't understand what Tyson and I can do and we don't understand what she can do." Charlie fidgeted as though he was uncomfortable with the fact that he didn't understand his daughters powers.

"When Bells came home from school one day smelling of vampires I knew we were heading in a dangerous direction. Admittedly I felt a little better when I realised you were Carlisle's kids, I knew your old man way back in the day. As much as it kills me to say it, you're good for Bella, all of you. And you've all done right by my little girl so it's kind of hard to hate you."

"We got her captured"

"No she got herself captured. I know how selfless, stupid and reckless my kids are. Edward I know how much it's killing you sitting here, playing happy families and doing nothing but you've got to trust those girls down there. If anyone can bring back my kids alive it's them."

"If you don't mind my asking Chief Swan, what makes you so sure that your children are still alive?"

"I know they are still alive because they are together, each of my kids is stubborn to the core, all three of them together? Nothing is stopping them coming home, have a little faith"

"I'll try sir" Charlie nodded and turned to leave the room but stopped.

"Oh and Edward"

"Yes sir?"

"It's Charlie" Edward felt his eyes widen in surprise, he had not been expecting that.

* * *

Bella felt herself being lifted and she forced her eyes open. Amelia was moving her into her brothers lap.

"Hey Bells, welcome back" She tried to smile at her brother but she was too tired and sore to do anything.

"It's going to be alright, you'll feel a hell of a lot better soon" Bella felt herself being shifted until her head was resting on her brothers arm, his wrist tilted towards her mouth.

Amelia locked her eyes with her sisters once more.

"Bella are you absolutely sure this is what you want?"

"Yes"

Without another seconds hesitation Amelia dug her nails into Tyson's wrist causing a stream of blood to flow from the wound. Bella flinched but Amelia gently grabbed onto the back of her head and pulled her forward until her lips were pressed against the wound. Startled Bella opened her mouth and the sticky liquid seeped its way down her throat. She tried to pull away but Amelia held her tight.

"Stop struggling Bella, this is the only way" After what felt like an eternity Amelia released her grip on her head and she fell back into her brothers chest. Her body tingled almost to the point of it being painful.

"Easy Bells, just relax, it's alright" her brother soothed.

The tingling was becoming painful now like thousands of needles digging into her skin, she whimpered in pain. Slowly she became aware of singing and she realised that the sound was coming from Amelia. As though her sister was casting a spell, she found herself relaxing, she tried to make out the lyrics but her head began to feel foggy and as she began to succumb to the blackness she became aware of two things, the pain in her body had eased considerably and her sister was singing about losing her soldier lover on her wedding day.


End file.
